1. Field of Invention
The subject matter disclosed herein relates to determining geographic locations based on visual information obtained through an image capture device.
2. Information
Mobile communication devices are one of the most prevalent consumer owned technologies in the digital information arena. Satellite and cellular telephone services and other similar wireless communication networks are widely available. The capabilities of the mobile communication devices, and the corresponding services, have also expanded to include applications such as image capture, connectivity to the internet, and providing location-based services. One service in this respect is to provide navigation information to a user through a mobile communication device operating in either a stand-alone mode or with assistance from other network-based devices.
Navigation information can be provided through a satellite positioning systems (SPS) such as, for example, the global positioning system (GPS), GLONASS, Galileo and other like Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). SPS enabled devices, for example, may receive wireless signals that are transmitted by satellites of a GNSS and/or by terrestrial based transmitting devices. The received SPS signals may, for example, be processed to estimate a location, speed, and/or heading of the location-enabled device. For example, a user may be provided with turn-by-turn directions, a map or other navigational information to help a user to navigate to a location.
In some circumstances, however, it can be difficult to determine a location of a device with enough precision to provide useful location and/or navigation information. For example, there may be times when SPS signal and/or other signal reception is inadequate. Consequently, for this and other reasons it may be beneficial to employ techniques that allow for location, navigation, and/or other similar information and/or services to be provided to a user under circumstances where they might otherwise be unavailable.